Manchester United won’t make top four place
And they don’t deserve one. In fairness to United, they were the better side and had the match-control throughout the majority of the match. This was one of the rare performances (if not the only one) this season where United conquered the away pitch like it is Old Trafford; high possession stats (69% of the ball after the final whistle), endless exchanges between midfield and the centre-back duos with occasional back to de Gea, panic long ball to Rooney and Fellaini when Cisse and Riviere press and the situation is back to square one. Couple of chances was created, but ones that begged to be put away were fluffed by Rooney after his great control & turn and Young who gave the opportunity to Krul to complete amazing double save. Rooney looked lively and sharp, and in the end, his persistance paid off with powerful run that ended with mis-clearance and Young’s calm finish, but man-of-the-match award was yet again given to David de Gea. Newcastle, who is stationed in the middle of the table without the possibility to fight for Europa League, gave below average resistance to the team who had the imperative of winning this match before the set of defining fixtures and almost got away with the point. It is not encouraging thought before trips to Anfield and Stamford Bridge and home matches against Spurs and Manchester City.
Team cohesion and understanding is worse than on pre-season tour
The permanent problem United have, no matter what eleven gets the trust of Louis van Gaal or the formation they are arranged in. It is painful lack of movement when the players are not in possession of the ball. That issue becomes clear every time Blind or Evans passes the ball backwards, due to no available options to pass the ball forward to. It is easy to play against passive United and it’s easy for opponent’s midfield to cover potential dangerous passes. Help isn’t coming from the wingers or strikers either. Practically non-existent movement behind the defence with the aim to beat the offside cannot lift the burden the job for midfielders. It’s baffling to see such a lack of team cohesion and understanding after two thirds of the championship passed. There is no signs of improvement in that aspect, in fact, Manchester United had shown better flow of passing and movement in USA, where they managed to create some brilliant moves in victories against quality opposition like Real Madrid and Liverpool.
Falcao and van Persie, two strikers who were blamed for not doing enough in those matters, didn’t feature on the tour or in tonight’s match, while Wayne Rooney showed some, although not enough progress. Whoever gets the chance to play as the attacking midfielder, (not convincing Fellaini got the nod at St. James’ Park), must try and sort out the link between early and advanced stages of the attack, and it seems that Juan Mata hasn’t earned Van Gaal’s trust.
United need a complete midfielder
Midfield pair Herrera-Blind has been consolidated in midfield through the last couple of games. While on the paper it seems that those two lack the physical presence and stamina to be a long-term solution for United woes, performances of the pitch indicate insufficiency of decisiveness and quality positioning. Passing between Blind and Herrera is often not attacking-minded, they both need too muxh time on the ball, regularly take the easy option and they stop thinking instantly after making that pass. However, the biggest issues are situations when opposition regains possession in the middle third of the pitch which more often than not leaves the defensive line exposed, due to the lack of concentration in midfield, caused by low level of knowing each other’s game. Both Herrera and Blind are considered to be a adaptable players, but United cry for a complete midfielder like Roy Keane was. If United want to become great again “role players” like Blind and Fellaini must be not regular starters.
Big reputation players still didn’t prove themselves… and time is running out
Radamel Falcao’s time at United is definitely coming to a close. It’s the first time this season Louis van Gaal didn’t put a second recognised striker in, which is a big indication knowing the character of the game. With seconds still left to go and result still and 0-0, Van Gaal used his final substitution and took off Rojo, who was threatened by second yellow card, for Michael Carrick. Falcao will be left frustrated, but United won and his unsatisfaction will fall to a deaf ears. Angel di Maria was for the second game in a row subbed after confidence-less display, full of unforced inaccurate passes, wasteful crosses and lack of clear individual plan. Januzaj was again an improvement on Di Maria and it will be interesting to see the further development of this situation, with the full pressure on the Argentinian against Arsenal in the FA Cup.
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